Today's Reading:
- Proverbs 13:2 - 13:8
Proverbs 13:2 - 13:6
I cherish the words of wisdom found in the book of Proverbs. Each verse in this book speaks to me as I read it. Today I'm going to give my thoughts on each of these six verses.
13:2 Wise words will win you a good meal, but treacherous people have an appetite for violence.I liken this verse to wise people who are eating the bread of life. They are satisfied and fully fed spiritually. The treacherous and/or wicked have appetites that are never satisfied. The sinners just keep trying to satisfy their hunger with their own desires (sin) in vain, yet their souls can never be fully satisfied until they taste the bread of life.
13:3 Those who control their tongue will have a long life; opening your mouth can ruin everything.Do you ever watch a TV show or movie where a person catches a real break -- let's say a judge hands down a lightened sentence -- but then that character has to open his mouth and ruin everything? Life is a lot like that, I think. We allow our tongues to control us, instead of us controlling our tongues. The bible is clear that the tongue is a dangerous weapon. It is detrimental to our lives, to our souls, to our hearts. If we do not have control of our own tongues, then we are not in control of our sinful flesh.
13:4 Lazy people want much but get little, but those who work hard will prosper.I've met them. They are the people who want to complain that life just isn't fair for them. That they should have what so-and-so has. That this other person doesn't deserve this or that. Sometimes it might be true. Bad things happen to all of us, we all fall on hard times. But more often I see people who are always in a bind, and they always want to blame someone else for their problem. I wish I could shake these people up -- tell them that life is yours to grab by the horns. If you want something, work for it! Achieve it! Prosper! The Lord is telling us this right here in this verse.
13:5 The godly hate lies; the wicked cause shame and disgrace.As people who are redeemed, we should hate lies. Lies are of this world only; lies are of Satan only. The Lord never lies to us. The Lord does not deceive us. The Lord does not trick us. I used to pray fearfully, thinking that if I said the wrong thing I might create a "loop hole" or open up a means for something bad to happen. And then I realized one day that I needn't be so fearful. The Lord is not looking for a means in which to trick me, or deceive me. That is not the Lord's nature at all. Instead, that is what Satan does to the Lord's followers. The Lord is good, the Lord is awesome, the Lord is Holy and the Lord does not deceive.
13:6 Godliness guards the path of the blameless, but the evil are misled by sin.Sin is like an entity that is alive. It grows inside you, blackens your heart, takes over your soul. It lies to you, it tells you to accept it, it blinds you to the truth. It helps you to reconcile the sin to yourself that you believe that you are justified in what you are doing. You are not justified. You are not an exception. I am not an exception. When we sin, we are blamed for our sin. We are misled by our sin. The Lord will judge us for our sin. I would rather be godly and blameless before the Lord, though it is the hardest path of all to take -- and I am not even close to being there yet. I will never be there, for I am human, but the important thing is repentance and forgiveness. For the Lord will make us blameless, if we truly repent and change our ways.
